The GSquad Issue 1: Enter The G!
by Kaiden
Summary: When a group of people with powerful abilities are fatally brought together. More than just the destiny of the city of Adelaide rests in their hands...
1. Origin of the Ultra Ego

THE G-SQUAD

ISSUE 1- Enter the G

A/N- I guess I should start with how this all came about. In the Year of our Lord 2003, I attended Box Hill TAFE (Which is the Australian ecquivalent of college) I made a group of friends, Ken, Cathy, Joel, and Nikki. Now we started the designs of the G-Squad, With me and Ken at the helm. Which is basically, comic book characters based on ourselves. With Ken's permission, I'm temporarily putting up the first issue in novelized form to get some public introspection. We would like to get it published, but alas, we don't know anyone who can draw. Another note, if anyone reads this story and likes it, and can draw. We'd be most appreciative if you could send us some concept sketches, MORE CHAPTERS COMING, AND MORE CHARACTERS!

Chapter 1- Origin of the Ultra Ego.

All of the great legends and stories of our world start with an innocuous event, so too does ours. You would probably think me mad if I were to say that these events were true, but then, who is to judge? Believe it or not, I will recount this story as true as I can remember.

Ken Castle was just a young boy when the artist known as M.C Hammer was at the height of his popularity. Being an avid fan, his room was filled with memorabilia and posters, cheap and mass produced. Many a day he would jump around listening to Hammer Time playing as loud as the bulky cassette player would go.

It was in this time that the artist was touring Australia. As fate would have it, his tour passed through Adelaide, a concert was the talk of the quiet suburb in which Ken's family lived, as it was held just a few streets away.

Ken's pleas did not fall on deaf ears. His mother and father purchased premium tickets, the smile that showed on Ken's face when he was told had made his mothers and fathers year.

They had to admit though; they had a good time themselves. M.C Hammer certainly knew how to get an audience pumped. At the close Ken was absolutely hyperactive, and his father bent down and whispered into his ear.  
"How would you like to meet him in person"  
At this question, Ken's eyes lightened up.  
"Oh! Can I dad? Can I really"  
As fate would have it, Barry Castle had a few friends who were roadies on the show. It was no problem for him to talk to them and take young Ken back stage.

Holding tightly onto his father's hand, Ken was lead around the stage, where he talked to a tired looking man wearing all black. They shook hands and Barry kept on leading Ken through a few wooden doors until they came upon a near white room, with mirrors against one wall and THE M.C Hammer sitting on a couch, with a towel around his neck and a bottle of French mountain water in his hand.

He looked up at Barry, a little startled, with a questioning gaze.  
"I think," said Barry, "that this is perhaps your most determined fan in all of Adelaide. I think you might be sick of your own songs if you lived at our house"  
M.C Hammer, being a good showman and performer, never had too little time for his fans. So he laughed out loud.  
"Ha, I don't know about that." He said in good humour. "I think I'm past that"  
Both Barry and M.C Hammer laughed, the joke was beyond Ken.

But M.C Hammer stood up and walked up to Ken.  
"What's your name man?" He asked.  
Ken, being awed and a little shy, responded with a "K-ken"  
M.C Hammer smiled, and felt more empathy with this kid than with any other fan. He walked to his wardrobe and opened a secret compartment at the back. He procured a metal box, like a little safe, with a keypad on the top. He typed in a four number code and the top popped open, from inside he withdrew a wooden box with metal bracing keeping it shut, kept closed by a large padlock. He stared at the box for a second, and glanced at Ken.

"Little man, can you keep a secret?" He asked.  
Ken simply nodded, not really understanding what was going on. He looked up at his father who looked just as perplexed.

The performer took a gold chain from around his neck and used a fingernail to open up the golden dollar symbol. It was hollow except for a small key. He then took the key out and unlocked the padlock, allowing the metal bracings to fall to the ground.

He then walked to Ken and got on one knee, eye to eye with the child.  
"I want you to take this, and look after it. If it wasn't for this, I'd be nothing. I've already got more than any man would want, so I don't need it. So never lose it. 'Cos it could be the best thing that ever happened with you."

Ken looked down at the wooden box, and dared not open it here. Being a child he was much more sensitive to these things. But there was something great inside that box.

That was the same year that M.C Hammer's career inexplicably disappeared.

He returned home that night. But was far too tired to open the box. And his father said, "Whatever he gave you, it's yours. I won't take it or look at it." Although when Ken was fast asleep he had snuck into the room making sure it wasn't anything he didn't want his son taking part in. After glancing in the box, he felt satisfied and never look for it again.

The next day when Ken returned from school, he had the box on his mind all day, but every time he approached, he had that same feeling of prominence, and slowly withdrew.

But that night, he had the box with him when he lay in the bed, and slowly opened it. The inside of the box was lined with purple velvet. Slotted into a slit in the centre was a gold block, perfectly polished, Ken's face was reflected in its yellow splendour. He slowly freed it from its container. It was a rectangle of gold, with strange lettering, maybe another language, on the top. And on the bottom were three circular loops.

It was a ring, not a regular ring, but a three-finger ring. Designed to sit on the three middle fingers on a hand. Ken clutched it in his hand and smiled quietly. He repeated this process every night after.

Many years passed since then. Every night he clutched the three-finger ring in his bed. Ken had become an adult. His body expanded, and he strolled around his high school in his twelfth year uniform that did little to hide his bulky shape. But it wasn't a bother for him. He was very confident, and as an in-joke between him and his friends, they called him the Ultra Ego. Because of his well endowed ego. It was a well-known fact around the people that knew him. He was so full of confidence that you just forget his physicality.

It was in this year it happened. He had never so much as suspected for instant. He had never given thought to where his personality came from, it just seemed a natural evolution from his childhood. But now he knew better.

It was a project, one of those silly "human development" classes that were becoming popular in schools lately. Class members were to do a speech on their greatest motivations in life. What the project really was about was your favourite celebrity and why.

Ken had not forgotten his child hood, and nor did he forget his child hood hero. As a testament, and a confidence boost to talk in front of the class, he brought the three-finger ring out of his room for the first time. Now in front of a group of bored students, he fingered it in his pocket.

"Hammer was a fucking pussy!" Called out Jay Guvarrez in the front row. And before Ken could stop, the ring was on his hand. He leapt forward and backhand slapped the imbecile in the forehead. It didn't seem like much of a whack, but it knocked him out of the chair and into the person sitting next to him.

There was a sudden gasp and silence. Jay was sitting on the ground; if he had opened his eyes he probably would've seen yellow birds circling his head. But there imprinted on his forehead was the meaning of the arcane lettering of the ring. Stamped into his skin were the words "ME BITCH"

Ken looked around at the class; they were all staring at him. He felt so powerful, he could take them all on, But why should he? They were all students, little kids. He simply strutted through them and walked out of the classroom. He felt so cool and powerful; he walked through the door, and then realized he didn't know where he was heading. Cool as a cucumber, he strolled down the corridor and into the bathroom, and saw a total stranger in the mirror.

There was some semblance to Ken, but his stomach had shrunk, and his chest had grown. His upper arms were thicker, and his legs were thinner. It was also his clothes. His school tie had disappeared, and the top two buttons were undone, showing a gold chain. He slowly took the ring off and deposited it back in his pocket. He looked back in the mirror and Ken had returned, so had the scrappy tie around his neck.

The door breezed open and for a second he felt a rush of fear that his teacher had come in. He was himself once more.

This phenomenon was kept as his own secret. After all, who would believe him let alone understand? The teacher had given him a suspension and tried to make him hand in what he thought were brass knuckles, but Ken had made the teacher believe he was so shaken by the ordeal that he threw them out. But this secret was not his own to keep after he was involved in a fire. 


	2. Destiny's Forge Blazes

THE G SQUAD

ISSUE 1- Enter the G!

A/N I know this chapter came really fast. But I just sat down and started typing. I got carried away I guess. I think that's a good thing. MORE TO COME!

Chapter 2- Destiny's Forge Blazes

It was one of those hot and stuffy South Australian days. Not quite sunny and not quite raining. Ken Castle was in a home economics class, ill named in Ken's opinion. The only thing taught in that class was how to cook savoury meals. Today, it was a fruitcake that everyone was labouring with.

Although the ventilation was on, the stove was switched on at every workbench, making the class room an oven. Students were paired up and the task of the fruitcake was separated evenly between them. The teacher, Ms Luffet, was sitting at the teacher's bench up front of the class. Full aware that the students knew how to use the kitchen equipment, left to their own devices.

Nikki Winstanley was in a grumpy mood. The teacher had picked out the pairs and, as per usual, had not partnered her up with Cathie, her best friend. Instead she was sharing her load with Melville, the class church boy. Why was it that every single class had some god freak?

The only consolation was that Cathie was working on the bench just behind theirs, so they had lots of time to chat. But at the moment that was little comfort. She was cutting up pieces of fruit as Melville whipped the cream. He was going on about all the people the bible hated. And that was when he said it.

"There's also homosexuals too. They are so totally wrong! They are so going to burn for making other people gay."

The eavesdropping classmates rolled their eyes. Except for Ken, most of them turned back to what they were doing. He kept watching, Nikki had stopped cutting her fruit and her knife hand was hovering over the chopping board. He held the ring firmly with his hand in his pocket.

Melville kept on spewing forth his verbal vomit. Cathie was just standing there watching, her partner had left the workstation to get some more fruit. Nikki's hand began shaking, and both Cathie and Ken looked on in surprise as the large knife in her hand was beginning to glow red.

"I mean, they chose to go against god." Rolled on Melville's mouth. "Chose to stay out of perfectly good marital relations. I'm glad people tell those freaks where to go, I mean they clearly ignore Exodus 11:12 where god…"

As the air around them began two shimmer, Cathy pointed to the microwave. "M-microwave's g-gona blow!" Piped up the usually quiet girl with her stutter. At this point Nikki dropped the knife and gave Melville a huge smack across the head, sending him to the floor. Cathy walked forward to grab Nikki's shoulder, sparks flew out of the microwaves ventilation and Ken pulled the ring on.

It all happened so fast. Ken's lithe ringed form jumped over his counter, and leapt forward. Catching the two students in a waist-high tackle, his body between them. As he connected, he felt Nikki blaze with intense heat, and a shockwave pulsed from her, making the entire room about five degrees hotter.

They had managed to hit the ground just as the microwave door burst open and flew across to the opposite bench, embedding itself in the oven door. They lay there for a half second. Ken brushed himself off. And quickly pocketed the ring. The heat dissipated and smoke rose from the busted microwave.

Nikki's uniform was covered in scorches, as was Ken's on his left hand side. His ring stopped his skin from burning, but Cathie's outstretched hand had turned a hue of red. The entire class watched with shock, and counted them lucky, as they hadn't been hurt. If only they knew the truth, but they would never know. The incident was passed off as a busted microwave.

Ken had tried to talk to either one of them a few times. But Nikki was obviously avoiding him. Whenever she spotted him she quickly turned the other way. Cathie, on the other hand, when she wasn't with Nikki, she was nowhere to be seen. Ken even tried some of the nerd watering holes, the chess club, the RP group at the back of the library, even the death match guild where Ken was known to wonder in at lunch from time to time.

It was only two days after that Ken managed to talk to them. As fate would have it, he wasn't actually looking for them that day. He was wondering around the school as he often did, ring kept in his pocket. When he was walking passed the school amphitheatre, he noticed the main entrance was left half open. He approached to close it when he heard voices from inside. He entered as quietly he could, and closed the door behind him.

He noticed Cathie and Nikki on the lowest row of seats, Nikki had her head turned down to the ground, and Cathie had her hand on Nikki's shoulder with a concerned look on her face. As ken slowly descended towards them with as much stealth as he could manage, he heard them talking.

"I didn't want it to be like this." Said Nikki, dry eyed and resolute. "I try really hard to not be different, then there was Home Ec"  
Which was a shortened version of Home Economics. Ken was about two rows behind them, and stood there listening to the conversation.  
"I never wanted to be owing my good reputation to someone putting themselves out for me"  
There was some silence for a few moments, and then Nikki said. "Especially not to 'some guy"  
The words rolled off her tongue like a bees sting.

"Thanks." Piped up Ken, making the two girls jump. "That means a lot to the guy who had to replace his uniform"  
The two girls sat there staring at the highly unimpressed look on Ken's face. There was some look of empathy on Cathie's face. But Nikki tried to stare Ken down.  
"However," he continued nonchalantly, "I can't blame you for not wanting to draw attention. I have my secrets."

The two girls looked at him in surprise. It was then that Nikki noticed something. Cathie's outstretched hand was slightly burned, but there was not a singe on Ken.  
"How did you turn out so well?" She asked, suddenly figuring out she wasn't the only one with a secret. "When your clothes were burned."

"I can show you," said Ken with a knowing look in his eye. "And if you keep my secret, I won't tell anyone you're a pyrokinetic"  
"How d-did you k-know?" Stuttered Cathie, who rarely spoke.  
Nikki wasn't taken aback by the statement, which was why she was most upset in the first place. He had her secret to keep; now she would have his.

"Come on." Exasperated Ken. "Anyone who was watching closely could easily figure it out"  
"Unless," replied Cathie, "you were w-watching b-but not s-seeing. Y-your secret is s-something p-paranormal too"  
Ken looked at her shrewdly. It was the first time she had uttered such a large sentence in his presence. Knowing he could trust them, he slowly produced the ring from his pocket. Not even the lint-lined pocket or his sometimes grubby hands had tarnished it; it was as shiny as it ever had been.

All three of them could feel it. It was amazing, a vibrance emanated from it like a glorious light. The dim flueros glinted on its edge, pronouncing quite easily the wish of many men, spelled out in this small gold trinket. It was right here that Ken felt it for the first time. M.C. Hammer passing it on to him, Jay being pimp slapped, Nikki's torment in the one class they had together, the three of them meeting at this one place, this one time. It was all happening for a reason, something somewhere had meant for this to happen.

Ken pulled the ring onto his left hand. For a moment nothing happened.  
"L-looks good on y-you"  
Then they saw its true effect. His shoulders broadened, his body turned from a circle to a square, to an inverted triangle. His facial features rearranged themselves, and his clothes changed to the coolest brands around. Ken had in the span of a few moments become the Adonis that most guys aspire to be.

"Wow, that's a hefty secret." Said Nikki.  
He took it off and promptly returned to his usual stature.  
"I should hit the town with this thing someday." He said with a smile.  
"Absolutely," Nikki replied, "If I was straight I'd probably go for you"  
"Whoa! Hold on." Said Ken, surprised. "You're a lesbian?"

Nikki nodded. "Only Cathie here knows. She's my little angel"  
Cathie laughed. "Y-your silent a-angel"  
The three of them laughed out loud, they had become firm friends. 


	3. The GSquad Begins

THE G SQUAD

ISSUE 1- Enter the G!

A/N I wrote this chapter a day after I wrote chapter two. It took me ages to put it up cos, well. I really got into Azumanga Daioh, and I had considered planning on moving the G-Squad from Manga to Comics, and I've finally done it, so I can finally post it.  
MORE CHARACTERS, MORE ACTION! YAY!

Chapter 3- The G-Squad Begins

The Adelaide State Library was quiet at the best of times, and closing time on Friday night was about as noisy as it ever got. It was therefore easy for the two secret carrying friends to slip into the staff lounge and wait for their knowledgeable friend to finish the last few requests at the circulation desk.

Finally, most of the lights were out and the doors were closed. Cathie closed the door to the staff lounge behind her and ran towards the two. The trio embraced in a huge hug, this was the first time Ken and Nikki had seen Cathie for two years.

After high school, Cathie had gotten a job in Melbourne, Although Ken and Nikki weren't exactly sure where it was, they did know that she was working in some sort of library. A few days ago, they received an e-mail from her saying that she was transferred back to Adelaide and to meet her after work on Friday.

After the hug, she stayed silent, as per usual, and motioned them to follow her. She took them to the warehouse of the huge library, and they followed her to a full-scale black marble statue of Plato. She deftly lifted the chin to reveal a switch.

Both Ken and Nikki looked on in awe as the trigger caused a panel to slide away from a nearby wall.  
"Now look at who's got a big secret!" Said Ken with a huge smile.  
"W-wait until you s-see what's u-under this p-place." Cathie stuttered.  
The trio walked into the darkness as the panel slid back into place behind them. A blue light slowly came on, revealing a large metal pole, ala a fire station. Exchanging grins, the three slid down into the blackness underneath the State Library of South Australia.

The underground storage areas had pretty much been abandoned since the stores had been moved to an offsite location, all, except the most prized of possessions. But at the moment all that could be seen was a pair of free standing neon lights that displayed only the items in closest proximity.

Right before them stood a desk with a computer on it, hundreds of cables trailing off. On either side were rows of bookshelves that went on into the darkness. Cathie approached the desk and picked up a torch.  
"I-I wanted t-to show you something, K-Ken." She said with her usual stutter.  
Ken and Nikki followed her as she put an index finger on a book, and started walking away from them, breaking the darkness before her with the torch.

She only took a few steps when she stopped and pulled out a large leather bound book. She walked back to the desk, which could seat all three of them, and threw down the dust covered volume with the words "Enchantment and Inanimate Possession" Etched into the front.

"I-I was reading into y-your ring, K-Ken." She said as she scanned the contents page, then flicked into the middle of the book and handed it to Ken. On the page were peeled pictures of crowns, thrones and jewelery of many different styles. He read the small paragraph at the top of the page.

"Holder of a power: An easily worn or held artifact that gives the possessor an enchanted quality. These have been known to grant people both magick and social status. However, as with all magick, there are restrictions to its functionality, such as temperament and the draining of other of their vitality."

Ken finished the paragraph and looked up at Cathie, his brow furrowed.  
"So, when I smacked Jay, I could have killed him"  
Cathie shook her head.  
"N-No, just h-his ego, and o-only for a w-while."

Ken snapped the book shut. Him and Cathie exchanged a meaningful glance and Nikki took this as her cue to ask about herself. She simply raised an eyebrow and tapped her left thumb against her sternum.

"W-Well honed t-telekinesis." Began Cathie. "Not p-pyrokenesis p-per say. You s-speed up the m-molecules around y-you. All done with your m-mind." She said rather quickly.  
"I-I'd say it's a t-temperamental p-power"  
Ken looked even more impressed than Nikki as he remarked.  
"Hmm, must only happen when you're steamed." He said. For a moment he looked at the two and burst into laughter, which went for several more minutes until he calmed himself down.  
"Oh man, that was good." He said, wiping a tear from his eye. He was quickly shut up by the cold glare he received from his compatriots. A cold glare that quickly turned into shock as Ken heard a voice behind him.

"I hope you have enjoyed your little class today. It'll probably be your last." Ken turned around to see a man descend from the ceiling, on what looked like a high tensile steel cable in the dim light. He wore what looked to be non-descript street clothes, and his face gave him the age of between fifty-five to sixty five. In his hand was a very real pistol that glinted metallically in the basement.

"Old M-Mr. Winters." Stammered Cathie. "I thought y-you were only s-staying late for ge-genealogy"  
Nikki also piped up. "Aren't you the old Mr. Winters who runs the amusement park"  
Mr. Winters easily swung off the rope and landed deftly on the ground, he used his free hand to reach for his neckline, and pulled off an impressively real mask to reveal common yet hardened features.

His age was difficult to place, somewhere in his late twenties. His hair was a light red, a sort of orange, and slightly grayed at the temples. His eyes were cold, images of a thousand deaths reflected behind them.  
"W-Who s-sent y-you?" Stammered Cathie, stuttering more than usual.  
His laser sight put a little red dot on Cathie's forehead as he advanced slowly. Ken slyly reached into his pocket. But the assailant's trained eyes were ahead of him; he swung the red dot over to Ken's face.  
"Now, now fatty. We can't have you reaching for your lifeline. Why don't you put those hands up where I can see them?"

None of the three had ever even seen a gun, let alone had one pointed at them. Ken slowly withdrew his hands and put them up. The gunman smiled with a cruel malice, once again training his weapon on Cathie.  
"To answer your question Miss. Someone who clearly wants you out of the picture. Now…"

His finger tensed on the trigger, he didn't see the movement behind him that the three saw. Soundlessly, what looked to be a large black sack descended over his head. A deafening bang shocked the trio and it took them a few moments to realize the shot had harmlessly strayed into the ceiling. They looked back at the stranger to see black gloved hands tweaking what looked to be knobs on the black sack, the gunman himself grappling futilely in all directions, as if not knowing where his head was.

The bag slowly lifted to have the mysterious gunman fall to his knees; he sat there with a lethargic look on his face. After a few seconds he blinked, and looked around, seeming dazed and confused. Slowly, the deus ex machina stepped into the light.

He was dressed as of a monk, in a large brown robe, the large hood cowled over his head, leaving his features in shadow.  
"You're welcome." He stated with a calm voice of a thousand mysteries. The black bag, with a tightening chord at the top, and a strap, was hung over his shoulder. Hundreds of knobs and switches covered every inch of its surface.

All of them stood there silently. Cathie and Nikki and Ken had known some strange things, but what happened in the last five minutes topped off the lot. Cathie made the first move. She stepped quickly and took the gun from the limp hand. He still blinked and swayed as she took out the magazine, and emptied the chamber.

She then helped him to his feet, to which he offered no resistance, and then frisked him. Finding a small arsenal of weaponry. Nikki gestured Ken around the frisking to approach the hooded mystery man. She took the lead with the questions.

"Who are you?" She stated, talking rather fast. "What's with the bag"  
The hood shifted slightly, and there was a slight glimmer from beneath, indicating his gaze was directly on her, it was quite disquieting.

His answer was just as directly to the point as her question.  
"I'm a person who knew where to be and what to have when I arrived"  
Ken, as per usual, was quick on a pop-culture reference.  
"HA! Just like in The Dead Zone! Word, the psychics are among us"  
Nikki rolled her eyes and turned back to the stranger.  
"In English please, I don't speak Cryptonian. Or," she nodded towards Ken, "in this guys case, nerd"  
"Hey!" Retorted Ken. "Nerd is a widely respected language, I'll have you know"  
Nikki turned her head and gave Ken a look that shut him up.  
"On with the story." She said, turning back to the hooded stranger.

"I am all that remains of my creator, Craig Harris." He started, his eyes glancing between the two under his hood.  
"I am a bio-synthetic construct that has taken his place in society. The item I carry with me is a multipurpose molecular alteration unit. Your gun-toting associate was… 'rearranged'. He won't remember anything for some time, and I have done my utmost to scramble his current mission."

Cathie seated and restrained the gunman, having removed enough ordinance for a small squad of paratroopers. Nikki pressed on.  
"So how long until he remembers everything? We need a timetable to know wether he'll kill us tomorrow, or in our sleep next year"  
The eyes under the hood flickered briefly.  
"In the next few hours," the Craig Harris construct explained, "he'll probably remember his name. But after that not even an educated guess could tell us how long it would take to achieve total recall. First his more important memories would return, such as his childhood and events from his youth. Slowly, the more recent memories will return to the surface. As for his final mission, it could take many years."

Ken interrupted the little session.  
"So, when does he start talking"  
The construct turned around and walked to a nearby support pillar. He whisked a small flask from under his robes and took a gulp. Then turned back to the group.  
"In approximately twenty five seconds"  
There was a moment of silence, as he looked up the pillar leading into the blackness, then looked back at the group one last time.  
"I'll see you all again." He said enigmatically. "Even the one who isn't here."

With that, he turned into an inhuman blur as he climbed up the stone pillar and disappeared into the darkness, without a sound.

Ken and Nikki stood there quite dazed, as if waking from the oddest of dreams. When Cathie's voiced piped up behind them "G-Guys?" she said. Her two friends quickly swung around. "Take a l-look at t-this."

Slowly, Nikki and Ken approached Cathie who looked to be holding a small card. On closer inspection, it was a tarot card; it showed a single blade, vines curled around the border of the picture, on the top and bottom of the card was written "The Ace of Swords".

They slowly turned the card over to reveal an almost plain white back. The words "Madame Frenchy: Clairvoyant and Psychic" were printed in tiny words on the bottom.

Nikki gasped suddenly.  
"That's my psychic!" She said slowly.  
The three exchanged glances, and looked over the card to see the gunman staring shrewdly at them. 


	4. The Ace of Swords

THE G SQUAD

ISSUE 1- Enter the G!

Chapter 4- The Ace of Swords

Dazed and confused, no memory of who or what I am and how I got here. Frightened and nervous I looked upon the faces of three total strangers. They all gave me a wide berth, as if I would strike them down.  
I wouldn't do that. Had I ever done that?  
I can almost remember something about hurting… about pain.  
It is… my friend?

The bound figure caught sight of the arsenal on the computer desk and jerked violently against his restraints.  
"What are you going to do with that"  
He looked absolutely terrified; his voice had lost its edge of control and lost its metropolitan accent. His accent seemed to be a mixture of Canadian and Russian.

Nikki stepped forward and looked the captive in the eye.  
"We pulled them off you. The question is, what were you going to do with them"  
The confusion of the seated man was evident as his eyes scanned the large pile of weapons. His gaze rested on the laser-sighted pistol he had held only moments before, some sort of recognition flickered in his eyes. He tried desperately to keep onto that slither of a memory, but it slipped away like smoke.

The three saw this conflict play out on his face and looked at each. Suddenly the man whispered something almost inaudible.  
"Point forty five centimetre long-slide pistol… With a laser sight"  
The three looked back at him, the memory resurged. Ken glanced at Cathy and raised an eyebrow.  
"I think I have an idea." He then looked back at the assassin and said, "Just chill for a minute, try and remember your own name."

He walked to Nikki, and whispered in her ear.  
"Keep an eye out, if he tries something, just imagine it's good old Melville sitting in that chair"  
Ken felt a wave of warmth come from her, confirming that Nikki had things well under control. He gestured Cathie away for a private chat.

The pair walked to the computer and began muttering inaudibly. Nikki kept watching Joel who looked around himself in a child like manner. Although when he looked up at Nikki, he turned away from her stare nervously. He had turned from being a ferocious pit bull, teeth bared. To a small wide eyed puppy, at the bottom of the food chain.

Cathie sat at the computer, typing constantly. Ken returned to the prisoner.  
"While my associate puts something together to help you remember who you might have been, perhaps you would care to take a break to use the facilities"  
Joel took a minute to comprehend, and nodded slowly.  
"There is a way to the men's room from here, isn't there?" Ken asked Cathie at the computer.  
Cathie, without lifting her gaze, slowly moved her left hand to a drawer next to her leg, she opened it and pulled out what looked to be a small remote, her right hand kept up it's avid typing. She pressed a small button with a door on it, and in the gloom a set of LED's illuminated the way to what looked like an old service elevator a few metres away.

"Cheers." Said Ken, continuing to untie the stranger.  
When he finished, the orange haired man stood confidently and walked side by side with Ken to the elevator.  
Nikki watched him suspiciously, the wave of warmth causing her own bright red hair to sway slightly on her shoulders.  
"I think I should come." She said almost forcefully.  
Ken turned around for a second to reply.  
"We'll be right. After all, if anything happens, I still got my lifeline." He grinned, pointing at his pocket.

The elevator lead to the Reference section in the main library, Ken had been to the South Australia State Library quite a few times, so he knew his way around. Ken showed him to the stall door and stood outside, as whistling resounded from within. Besides the whistling, wheels were turning in the man's head. He peered around the stall, noting that there were three items that could be used as makeshift weapons…

When they returned, Cathie had printed off a lot of cards, divided into five sections. Ken helped the stranger to his seat, and Nikki picked up the first stack and approached the man. "This is a little memory exercise. I'm going to show you a few cards with pictures on them. What I want you to do is tell me what you see on the picture. Got it"  
The amnesiac nodded slowly. As Nikki brought out the first card, it was a picture of a baby, wrapped up in blankets.  
"A baby." He said simply, Cathie nodded.  
"That's r-right," she said "just l-like t-that"  
The next card was a little girl, not any older than five. She was wearing a pink nightgown and smiling at the camera.  
"A girl"  
The third card was of a little boy, same age as the girl. He wore blue pyjamas and had a head of red hair, not as bright as Nikki's. About the same shade as the Assassins.  
"Joel… Someone called Joel. Wait, it's not someone, it's Joel Kruze. It's me."

The three smiled at each other. Cathie stepped forward. "Hello Joel K-Kruze. I-I'm Cathie D-Dixon, and t-this is N-Nikki Winstanley a-and Ken Castle." Cathie gave Joel a warm smile and Joel returned it.

"Ok…" Said Nikki, interrupting the moment. "Let's carry on with the cards."

Joel kept returning satisfactory replies to all the questions.  
"House"  
"Car"  
"Plane"  
"Computer"  
"Cat"  
"Dog"  
"Russian Infantry Kalishnikov Rifle. Commonly called the AK-47. Heavily distributed throughout the world as a standard issue combat weapon. Cheap, heavy recoil, discharges its entire magazine in approximately five seconds on full automatic."

Nikki looked at the card.  
"I would have also accepted 'gun'. But that will do"  
She was about to bring out the next card when Ken stopped her.  
"Whoa!" He started. "Hold on a second, where did that come from"  
Joel sat there for a moment.  
"I don't know…" Was all he could manage.

Cathie picked up the second set of cards.  
"I w-was hoping w-we would u-use these"  
She motioned to Nikki to put her cards down and began showing the cards to Joel, instead of general knowledge, these were pictures of military equipment, and vehicles. To everyone's astonishment, not only did he get them all correct. But he went into very deep detail on every card. This basically confirmed in their minds that Joel had been a weapons and military hardware enthusiast. Or some form of government agent.

By the time Nikki had shown the last card, a photograph of an armoured personnel carrier, Ken and Nikki were sitting on the edge of the desk, a bit bored. When they heard the silence. Ken stepped forward "I'll take the next round." He said, and Cathie turned around and pointed at the fourth stack.

Joel didn't recognize all the next cards. These were photographs of locations. From scenic countrysides, to capital cities. Joel did recognize quite a lot of Canada, and much of the northern hemisphere in general. However, he knew Melbourne fairly well, and some of southern Asia.

Cathie picked up the last stack of cards, and approached Joel, giving him another warm smile. These cards merely showed symbols and number patterns.

Joel only really recognized a few of them. Most of the cards were types of coding keys, or organizations that most of them had never even heard of.

After being showed a picture of a hammer and a sickle, which he easily recognized. Cathie pulled out a card of a picture of a winged lion and a snake warped around its middle. Joel stared at this picture suddenly, his eyes locked onto it, and his forehead broke out into a sweat.  
"Twelve." He said to Cathie, who looked at the card in puzzlement.  
"No actually." Said Ken in reply to Joel. "That's what we in the profession call Snakes on a Lion."

Nikki gave him a glare.  
"It's a symbol from ancient zodiac worship. It represents"  
Joel suddenly cut her off.  
"No your wrong!" He said angrily, taking the three by surprise with his forceful yell.  
"It's The Twelve. They're ancient. They know everything"  
Joel suddenly gripped his head in his hands, as if struck with a large migraine. He started to rock back and forth while mumbling.  
"They sent for me… They needed me… For something"  
He suddenly began to jerk, and fell out of the chair. Muttering something under his breath. Cathie kneeled next to him, and started to rub his shoulder, whispering inaudible words that soothed him.

He slowly looked up at her, tears in his eyes.  
"I can't remember." He said. Cathie merely smiled at him.  
"It's o-ok." She replied.

"I think I know someone who might." Said Ken, breaking the silence. "Nikki, maybe we should take him to a tarot reading"  
Cathie looked at Ken in surprise.  
"Don't t-tell me y-your s-starting to turn?" She said with a half smile.  
"Of course not." Said Ken knowingly. "But I think we should take him to Nikki's psychic"  
He picked up from the table the Ace of Swords card that had Madam Frenchy's stamp on the back.

Cathie helped Joel up from the floor; her and Nikki gave each other a nod. It was official; they were going to see Madame Frenchy.

"I feel, that for this momentous occasion." Said Ken loudly, drawing himself to his full height. "That we should head out under a common banner"  
He slipped the ring on his right hand and continued.  
"Since you are all now so dear to me. I proclaim us to be"  
He paused for effect.  
"THE G-SQUAD!"

As he punched his right fist into the air, his form flickered to one of six feet, muscle bound. His street clothes changed into a leather jacket, and jeans. A few pieces of gold glittering around his body.

"Uh… Is he always like this?" Asked Joel with an eyebrow raised.  
"Oh," responded Nikki, "you have no idea." 


End file.
